Field of the invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for providing an embedded structure.
The present invention further relates to a method for providing an embedded structure.
The present invention further relates to an apparatus for manufacturing an opto-electric device.
The present invention further relates to a method for manufacturing an opto-electric device.
Related Art
Opto-electric devices basically are constructed as an opto-electric medium sandwiched between a first and a second electrically conductive layer. At least one of these layers should be transparent to allow for a transmission of photonic radiation generated in the layer to the environment, in the case of a light-emitting device, such as an OLED. Likewise, in the case of a photo-voltaic device at least one transparent electrically conductive layer is required to allow photonic radiation from the environment to enter the photo-voltaic medium between the electrically conductive layers. Although transparent, electrically conductive materials, e.g. metal oxides, such as indium tin oxide (ITO) and organic materials such as PEDOT are known, the requirements of transparency and electrical conductivity are mutually conflicting. If the layer is sufficiently thin not to hamper light transmission then a significant voltage drop occurs in the layer. However, applying an increased layer thickness to improve conductivity will result in an unacceptably low transparency. An approach to overcome this dilemma is to apply a relatively thin transparent electrically conductive layer in combination with a grid of an electrically conductive material in electrical contact with the layer. In order that the grid is substantially invisible a target line width for the grid elements is in the order of 500 μm or less, but preferably the width is less than 50 μm. In order to obtain a target conductivity of 1 sq/Ω with this feature size of 50 um the lines must be several microns thick. The thicknesses of these lines complicate the further production process, because their topology greatly influences the spreading and covering of the layers that have to be coated on them.
US2009/0288567 discloses an apparatus for manufacturing electronic devices using a roll-to-roll rotary pressing process. The apparatus comprises a winding roll around which flexible printing paper is wound; a plurality of printing units; at least one coating unit; a rewinding roll to rewind the printing paper when printing has been completed. The apparatus further comprises a plurality of drying units.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,693,375 discloses a method for transferring ink on a plate onto a material to be printed. This is realized by a printing method that involves the steps of: providing the ink at predetermined positions on the plate. An electric field is applied to the ink to maintain configuration of the ink provided at the predetermined positions on the plate. This results in an increased viscosity of the ink so that it assumes a solidified state or a semi-solidified state. The ink is then transferred onto the material to be printed while maintaining the ink in the solidified or semi-solidified state.
WO2011/016725 discloses a method of manufacturing an opto-electric device. The method comprises the steps of providing a substrate, overlying a first main side of the substrate with an electrically interconnected open shunting structure, embedding the electrically interconnected open shunting structure in a transparent layer, removing the substrate from the embedded electrically interconnected open shunting structure, depositing a functional layer structure over a free surface formed after removal of the substrate.